Advice and Instructions

Protection of Children and Young People (The Working with Children Check)

Issued: 21 December 2001

In July 2000, new child protection legislation was proclaimed in New South Wales to reduce the risk of abuse to children. The legislation has implications for people working with children. The legislation is the:

• Commission for Children and Young People Act 1998; and
• Child Protection (Prohibited Employment) Act 1998.

Under the legislation, employers in child-related workplaces must:

• Ask all new and current employees - paid and unpaid - primarily working with children if they are a "prohibited person" i.e. a person convicted of a serious sex offence; and
• Arrange for a Working with Children Check, to be conducted by an Approved Screening Agency, for preferred applicants for paid child-related employment. A working with Children Check is conducted at no cost to child-related employers.

A child is defined in the legislation as a person under the age of 18 years.

Child-related employment is defined as any employment that primarily involves direct unsupervised work with children in a range of settings. For example, work in schools and TAFE institutes, hospitals, residential settings, child care services and foster care are regarded as child related employment.

Guidelines for employers on the Working with Children Check are available on the Commission for Children and Young People's website at www.kids.nsw.gov.au/check. These guidelines assist employers to determine whether employment in their organisation is "child-related", and describe the processes to be followed to comply with the legislation.

Approved screening agencies have been appointed to undertake the Working with Children Check on behalf of employers in NSW. The Department of Education and Training is the approved screening agency for the NSW education and training sector.

To register with the Department of Education and Training as your approved screening agency, and to obtain a copy of the Commission for Children and Young People's Guidelines for Employers, please contact the Employment Screening Unit, Department of Education and Training on ph: (02) 9836 9200 or fax: (02) 9836 9222.